Bedi, Prasanna helped Hayden overcome difficulties against spin

Hyderabad: One of the most effective batsmen against spin in modern day cricket, Matthew Hayden has credited his success against the spinners to a cricket camp in 1999.

A 27-year old Hayden turned up in a camp in India, where Prasanna and Bedi noticed certain flaws in Hayden's technique against the spinners. Recollecting Hayden's stint at the camp, Prasanna told Cricinfo, "We told him, either you take the ball on the full or wait. And we also talked about his sweep shot. Some batsmen usually take the left leg out and expose the middle stump. We asked Hayden to get in line a bit more before he plays that shot forcefully. He was obviously a very keen student."

Prior to that camp, Hayden had played seven Test matches and had scored 261 runs at an average of 21.75.

Post that camp, when he was called up for the now-famous tour of India in 2000, Hayden amassed 549 runs in three Test matches at an average of 109.80. He was the one Australian batsman who completely dominated the Indian spinners by playing attacking strokes effectively.

Hayden looked back at that camp and said, "It [the spin camp] was a very important camp. Based on that experience I was able to formulate a game plan and batting strategy. Importantly, I came to understand the mindset of a spinner. I practised a variety of shots, tried out lots of options and developed my game against spin."
 

Hayden's record in India has been outstanding; he has so far scored 793 runs in seven Tests at an average of 61.00.